Winter and spring

Ceaseless
Careless
Boundless
Unimpeded

The wind blows
from the Arctic wastes
of distant Canada
intensely cold

Warmed across the
vastness of the Atlantic
battling the moist warmth
of tropical breezes

Another gale batters
the ancient stones
and towering fortresses
of the Hebridean coasts

Transient snowflakes and
hailstones clatter insouciant
on the paving stones
of our old town

Winter seems
ceaseless
merciless
endless

What do I spy
shyly opening
where I left them
in November

Little crocuses
daffodils
and perhaps
a tulip or two

The days have
imperceptibly
but inexorably
lengthened

The equinox
approaches rapidly
Only three more weeks
and day equals night

Only a few more weeks
before we hear
the weak calls
of the newborn lambs

Spring is moving north
with the sun
We'll see it
however late